All Things Beauty

Category: Review

I am a huge fan of Instagram brows, and I have tested so many products to find the perfect products to achieve this well-desired look. From pomades to pencils I have put together my faves.

So my go to has to be Benefit Ka-Brow Pomade. I know I usually go for drug store products but with brow products I’m happy to branch out as they usually last over a year anyway, which makes it worth it. . Brows are one of the hardest parts of a polished look and I love this as the application is so easy to work with. I used the ABH pomade for a year and was so committed until I found this. They are quite similar, however I find that unlike most pomades, including ABH Dipbrow, this doesn’t dry up. It lasts all day, and has a very natural look to it, but you can easily build on it for stronger looking brows.

LJL Rating: 10/10

Next is another Benefit product- they don’t get their brow success for nothing! When I’m in a hurry I use Gimme-Brow! This brushes on so easily and enhances your natural brows. So if you already have a good set of brows, I highly recommend this. The only downside is that it can look messy, so if you’re like me and prefer tidy brows, you can easily clean up the look with concealer.

LJL Rating: 9/10

Next, an underrated brand- Lottie London. Their Archival Brow Pen is only £6.50 and isused to create a microblade effect. The end of this pen has 4 separate nibs which allow you to create natural looking brows in just a few fast strokes. This is great for either natural, bushy or insta-brows! The only flaw is that if you don’t use this with fast strokes, the product can bleed into fine lines.

LJL Rating: 8/10

Finally, for a simple pencil look, I use B. Pro Styler Brow Pencil, which is only £4.99 and is usually on offer. I use this either to quickly fill in my brows, or to neaten up the edges. The colour pay off is really strong, and the pencil is angled for ease. It also comes with a spoolie at the other end to help have a flawless look.

LJL Rating: 8/10

Overall, I do think that if you really care about how your brows look, then high end is always better. If you just like to fill in your brows, or lightly shape and define, then pencils and powders are the way to go.

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Hi All! Just a short post today, but I had to share these bargain primers that genuinely work so well for me, and they are only £4 and £5!!

My skin type is normal/ dry and I’ve always felt as though many primers are aimed at oily skin. I’ve tried so many out, and ended up just sticking to moisturiser. A couple of weeks ago I decided to make use of the penny saving 3 for 2 deal at Superdrug and give MUA’s new Pro-Base range a try, and damn I am sold.

The first primer I tried was the Primer Oil with Gold Flakes. This only cost £4 and has become my go to primer when creating radiant, dewy looks. It gives my foundation a silky finish and sits so comfortably on the skin. I’ve found that it works well with foundation sticks, and cream contour as it makes blending so easy. It’s also worth mentioning how good this little gem looks with it;s high end packaging, and visually pleasing formula!

The other new fave is the Softening Facial Oil Stick which is £5. This is perfect for creating an even base and it gives me all day hydration. I love using this if I’m wearing makeup for long hours as it works as a moisturiser and a primer, and I don’t need to worry about my skin drying out. I’ve even been using it recently on its own to hydrate my skin.

Overall I’m so impressed by these products. MUA have a huge new range with all these products for such a budget price, and I can’t recommend enough! Although I’ve spoken about products ideal for my skin type- they have products for oily, sensitive and normal skin!

LJL Rating: 10/10

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So Lottie London is possibly one of the most underrated brands I have come across. There isn’t much talk of them in the beauty realm, or on social media. After testing some products I am shocked!! They are super cheap, in most Superdrug stores and often 3 for 2 online, and they are truly great quality. If I’m being honest, they could double their prices and I’d still be interested.

I mostly tried their lip products and have actually discovered a new daily fave! It’s the Slay All Day Liquid Lipstick in shade GIRL PWR. This gem is £5.95 and it’s my go to shade. The formula is so smooth and creamy and it lasts all day without drying my lips out. I’ve worn it from 7am for work to 3am for a night out and it has not budged! (And yes it was a messy night!)

Speaking of nights out… the best lip look for that is their Glitter Switch Liquid Lipstick. This is £6.95 and I own 5 of them! If you haven’t heard of these, they work by having the appearance of a liquid lippy… but once you rub your lips together- TA DA! They are glittery! I love that it creates a shimmery and elegant look, rather than a chunky glitter one. I find this product so innovative, and it makes a cheaper alternative to the £17 Ciate version- which I do also love but this is much more affordable. I recommend the shade “Spill the Tea” as it’s a simple, light nude.

Another STUNNING product is their Eye Foils for £4.95. These are perfect for shimmery cut creases, and I even use mine for lip toppers. My fave shade has to be “Savage”, a pearly pink. Now is a great time to mention how gorgeous their packaging is- I seriously think they are premium in every way but the price!

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Hello everyone! So Sports FX has been popping up everywhere lately! From bloggers to instagram to beauty boxes so I thought it may be worth giving some of their products a little go. For those who don’t know, this is a brand for long lasting makeup even during intense physical activities. Now I won’t lie, I am not sporty by any means, but I do work long hours so having my face stay in place is important to me. If you like any of this then they can be bought online or in Sports Direct and they do hair and body care as well as makeup- impressive!

I’ll start with the Cool Down Primer and Recovery Gel. This is £10 and OWCH. I have really sensitive skin so I’m not sure if this may be why it felt like my face was burning off! It made my skin so cold that it burnt. I forced 3 of my friends to try it to and one of them found the same as me, but the other two had no issue with it. My advice here would be to perhaps avoid it if you have sensitive skin! I can’t really rate it as a primer as it was too painful for me to keep on 😦

Some of you may have already heard of the popular Blend and Go Beauty Sponge for £5. I have had multiple beauty blenders over the years and this is my absolute fave! It has so many different angles that it can be used for cream contour, liquid highlight, and ofc foundation. It’s super soft and makes my foundation apply so lightweight and flawlessy, I LOVE IT! LJL Rating: 10/10

I’ve just spotted I didn’t take a pic of the Balance Boosting BB cream my bad! This is £12 and it’s pretty good. I don’t really wear BB creams as I’m a full face kinda gal but it’s got a medium coverage and sits comfortably LJL Rating: 7/10

Next is the Coconut Moisturising Lip Balm for £5. Now I am low-key obsessed with this as I’m convinced that lip balms aren’t that necessary but I love this as a lip primer as it makes lipstick glide on so well and it prevents liquid lipstick from cracking. I would definitely recommend this! LJL Rating 10/10

They also do an angled Brow Pencil for £7. I think it’s a great idea to have it angled but it’s just so hard that you have to really drag it on the skin to get some pigment showing. I chose the dark brown shade and yet it isn’t dark at all. I also think that the price is steep considering most drugstore ones are around £3. LJL Rating: 3/10

The Mist and Face spray is £8 and I’m not convinced that this is a great product really. This is advertised as keeping your makeup in place but I find that it doesn’t really make a difference to it at all. LJL Rating: 5/10

Finally, I have both of their brushes which as a pricy £12 each however they are double ended. I think that the buffer and powder brush are pretty average, but the duo highlight and contour brush is fab! I use both ends for contour and its amazing as I can use one side to really carve out my cheekbones, nose, chin and jaw then use the other side for my cheeks, forehead and neck. Since using this I have even received more comments about my contour so I do think it’s worth trying! LJL Rating: 10/10

Overall we’ve got a mix of opinions here! Some things I love and some I’m admittedly not so keen on, but I do have to say that I do think that this is a promising brand. They offer some great stuff, and I hope that they bring out new products in the future!

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Concealer! This is a standard go to product for most people, whether you’re going for a full face look or a little cover up, so I thought it would be important to share my experiences. It’s worth mentioning that I have AWFUL dark circles and that’s my main use for concealer, but I also use it for strobing to add some dimension to my face. I’m going to write on 3 concealers then give a rating for a few more at the end, because I have tried A LOT of concealers!

I’m going to start with Revolution’s Conceal and Define Concealer. There has been so much hype over this but I don’t understand why! The price is £4 and the only thing I like about it is the packaging. I’ve tried a few of the lightest shades and I feel that the coverage isn’t great and they all looked pink on my skin. The product is thick so works for cut creases at least. Let me know what you think! LJL Rating: 3/10

Next I want to mention Maybelline’s Instant Conceal Eraser. I don’t hate this, but for £9 it’s not great. The coverage is minimal and it dries down quickly which makes strobing really difficult unless you’re super speedy with a beauty blender. Considering that this is only a few pound cheaper than a good foundation, it makes me like it even less. LJL Rating: 4/10

I will end on a good note with my expression of love for Collection’s Lasting Perfecrtion Concealer. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this. It’s just under a fiver and does everything. The coverage is amazing, it blends like a dream and really highlights the high points of my face. It sits so well that I don’t need to use setting powder either! LJL Rating: 10/10

So that’s my strong opinions on a few concealers! Have a look below to see my ratings on a few other concealers!

MUA Hide & Conceal Stick: 7/10 E.L.F. Concealer and Highlighter: 3/10

Nip & Fab Concealer: 3/10 Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer: 8/10

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HI everyone! Today’s blog will be slightly different as I won’t actually be reviewing specific products. Instead, I wanted to review a beauty box that I have recently subscribed to because I am SO impressed that I just had to share my views!!

For those who don’t know how it works, I’ll give a quick run through. You can chose from 3-9 items a month with free delivery ranging from £9-£18. Logically it makes sense to get the bigger box because then it’s only £2 per product, BARGAIN!

This is probably one of the most exciting things I wanted to blog about because it’s just great, I really have no critiques. I’ve tried other beauty boxes such as Birchbox and Glossybox, which I’m not a fan of. This box is different as it lets you chose from a huge range of products so you can get exactly what you want. This works well for me as I prefer makeup heavy boxes and I’m not too fond of toiletries, as you can probably tell from above!

The range of brands is incredible and this month included product options from O.P.I., SportsFX, Burt’s Bees, Sleek, Maybelline, John Freida and so many more! The huge range allows for you to get new products to try, and you can top up on products you usually buy for a discounted price. I was super surprised to find that two bonus items had been thrown in as well based on what I like- these were the Sanctuary moisturiser and a Ciate liquid eyeliner.

Overall, I’m in love with this company and I’m so excited to get my box for next month!

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If you’ve read y previous blogs, you’ll know how much I love L’oreal. So for me, this blog is hard because I hate to criticise a product from such an amazing brand. HOWEVER, I can’t be anything but honest when it comes to beauty reviews, especially when it comes to value for money.

So I’ll start there. The price of L’oreal’s Lash Paradise Mascara is £11.99. Considering this is a price closer to high end brands, I expected a similar quality. This has always been a very popular mascara, but maybe I’m doing something wrong because I can’t see why!

My instant impression was that the product seemed clumpy around the spoolie, because brush fibres are so tightly packed. This makes the application difficult because it feels like you’re placing the product onto your lashes, as opposed to combing it through. This gives the impression of clumpy lashes.

The product is also quite thick and lumpy, despite being advertised as ‘smooth and silky’, which meant I had to fan my face just to get the product to dry. I’ve never had to do this before! Overall, in spite of all the hype I just cannot love this product. I think maybe the hype was due to L’oreal rarely bringing out new mascaras, or perhaps the nice packaging. I do have very short lashes, so perhaps it works better on longer lashes looking for volume, but for me this is a no go. Hopefully I haven’t been too savage, and if you’re interested in mascaras that I do love, check out my blog Mascara, Mascara and More Mascara!